Legend of the Mermaren
by Celestriakle
Summary: A fairy tale story. Originally written 12/16/10


Once upon a time, there was a little village by a large lake like the ocean. And in this village there was a lonely fishermaren, who fished everyday.

Sometimes he caught a lot, but most of the time he only caught enough to feed himself. Every night, he ate alone, and he slowly grew very sad.

And one day, he went out in his boat, and he caught not a fish, but a mermaren! She was very pretty, and not at all happy about being caught.

He got very excited, but before he could say anything, the clever mermaren offered him a choice: He could have three wishes, anything his heart desired, and in return, all he would have to do is grant her just one wish.

And the fishermaren considered. It wasn't a bad idea, after all. How bad could her wish be, in exchange for three of his? And so, he agreed to the offer, much to the mermaren's delight.

He wished for things he thought would make him happy: Money so he could get whatever he wanted. An endless supply of food so he would never have to fish again. Power.

And the mermaren wished that she was free of the nets that he'd caught her with. She promised that his wishes would be granted, and waited for him to turn her loose.

He gazed at her for a moment, and was once again struck by her beauty. True to his word, he released her from his nets, but he didn't let her go quite yet. He sat on the docks and held her in his arms and said, "I have released you from my nets, but before you go, please allow me to hold you in my arms for just a little longer."

And the mermaren, a little flattered, agreed. She let him hold her for some time, before she slipped free of him and dove back into the water. She winked at him before she left, and said, "Maybe you shouldn't stop fishing." And she was gone!

He stared after where he saw her disappear for a few seconds longer, then he went home. Sure enough, his every wish had been granted. He spent a few days living his new life, but he couldn't stop thinking about what the mermaren said. Soon enough, he went fishing again.

And once again, in his nets was the mermaren. She seemed to have been waiting for him, and only pretended to look irritated at being caught.

Seeing her in the net, some part of him was surprised, but not really, and he was too happy to care. "Do I get another three wishes?" he asked as way of a greeting.

She seemed to consider. And then she said, "If I still get a wish in return." she seemed to have an injury on her tail, and wasn't really moving it much. It seemed to pain her a little, but she smiled at him.

He accepted the terms, but he glanced with concern at her injury. Without hesitation, he untangled just enough of her from the nets to examine it. "I need a little bit of time to think about my wishes."  
was his excuse.

And the mermaren let him look at her tail, blushing a little. "Very well" she said to him in return. She didn't want to say it was from getting chased by a large, angry fish that she'd teased a while ago.

He applied a small amount of a healing paste-he was no good at any kind of healing powers-and bandaged the mermaren's tail. "There we are. This time... I want a new boat, fine clothes, and... I want to see you again."

She smiled at him, and said to him, "In return, I'd like to see you again too." she stayed on the dock a little while longer... and then she winked and dove into the water. Under the dark water, she was quite pleased to note that her tail was all healed.

The fishermaren smiled. He was in the best mood he had been in in a long time. He found his boat at home and the new clothes in his closet, but he hardly paid them any mind. He had a plan. For the next two weeks, the fishermaren was very busy; he hardly got within a few feet of the lake. Then finally the night came when he went out on his new boat, dressed in his finest clothes, and something began to occur. The surface of the lake began lighting up, and a wonderful aroma filled the air: All around the shore and from the boat, candles and water lilies were being pushed onto the surface of the lake.

And from under the water, all the fish fled, fearing this new thing they'd never seen before. The mermaren, however, poked her head out of the water, interested in what she saw, not noticing that she'd come up with a lily on her head. She looked around and around, astonished by all that she saw. She saw the boat that the fishermaren had gotten and swam to it, wondering if he knew what this was.

The fishermaren beamed brighter than any candle when he saw her approaching him. He explained that he had done it for her, and he took the lily from atop her head and offered it to her.

The mermaren looked shocked. She wondered if he knew about the legend of mermarens and their living on land. She took the flower, and gratefully sniffed it's sweet smell. She carefully set it back in the water and slid onto the boat. She had another injury on her tail and was ignoring it for this moment.

But such a detail could not escape the fishermaren's sharp gaze. He put his hand on her tail near the wound, and looked at her with worry. "I wish you would stop getting hurt," he said.

The mermaren looked at him, and smiled, "Is that one of your three wishes this time?" she asked, flicking one of her finny attachments on her tail. She was teasing him, of course.

Quite seriously, he nodded and said, "Yes."

And the mermaren said to him in reply, "What are your other two wishes then, mister fishermaren?" she hadn't expected that kind of reply from him, and was blushing.

Sitting up, the fishermaren thought. "I wish that..." He glanced off the side of the boat and saw a particularly pretty lily, one that was deep purple, black, and white. It reminded him of the mermaren. With the reflexes of his trade, he snatched the lily from the water! "I wish this lily would never die," he said, "and... that you could stay with me, on land." He was unfamiliar with the legend behind his final wish, but he looked at her with hopeful eyes.

The mermaren looked shocked, "Do you know about the legend of mermarens on land?" she asked, looking a little pink in her star-marked cheeks. "If a mermaren wants to stay on land, she has to have a true love's kiss, otherwise she turns into foam..." she said.

The fishermaren didn't have to say anything. His eyes asked for him: Could he give her that? Did she want that? Instead, aloud, he asked, "What is your wish this time?"

And she looked a little bit shy as she said to him, "Your kiss."

So he gently placed a hand on her cheek... And he kissed her.

And she grew legs from her tail... and she stayed with him... from then on.

The fishermaren never felt lonely or sad ever again, because he knew he always had his mermaren with him. The end.


End file.
